President Trump is teaching the world a huge lesson. That valuable lesson goes something like this:
Don’t be needy.
Jim Camp is a world-famous negotiation coach. Jim has led some enormous negotiations: labor disputes, huge multi-national buys, and mergers. This is is what Jim says about neediness in his book Start With No:
It is absolutely imperative that you as a negotiator understand the importance of this point. You do NOT need this deal, because** to be needy is to lose control and make bad decisions**.
Yesterday, I pointed out that most politicians, especially Republican politicians, need every deal. And they use time to get “some deal done.” They delay. They move deadlines (which were never really deadlines.) They change positions.
**To politicians, any deal is better than no deal. **
Republicans need to get any deal done leads to disasters. Big-league negotiators know this.
I’ve written many times about Chris Voss. Chris was the FBI’s lead hostage negotiator for years. Chris is also a big fan of Jim Camp’s methods. Here’s what Chris says about neediness in his great book Never Split the Difference:
NO NEEDINESS: HAVING THE READY-TO-WALK MINDSET
We’ve said previously that no deal is better than a bad deal. If you feel you can’t say “No” then you’ve taken yourself hostage. Once you’re clear on what your bottom line is, you have to be willing to walk away. Never be needy for a deal.
**To Donald Trump, no deal beats a bad deal. **
Trump told Congress to vote on Friday. Pass or fail, he’s moving on.
That is leadership. And it teaches a lesson. It teaches people that the days of American neediness are over. Like when Ronald Reagan fired the PATCO workers.
If the bill passes, we have something to celebrate. Celebrate the fact that our President isn’t needy. Because the world now knows that Trump will walk away from a bad deal.
That’s an achievement worth celebrating.